Neil Carroll

We don’t have that many still-life painters amongst our artists, so it was time to put that right. When Neil Carroll approached us recently, asking if we would consider exhibiting his work, as do many artists, it just so happened that he was what we were looking for in terms of subject matter, a little out of the ordinary.Neil is a self-taught painter and although it has long been an ambition, he has only managed to paint seriously since 2011. He taught himself painting techniques mainly from watching DVD’s by the highly revered American artist, David Leffel. Neil has adopted many of Leffel’s techniques, including placing his still-life compositions against a classical, dark, Rembrandtesque background, giving the painting a moody quality, making the highlights really sing out from the canvas. Neil’s paint-handling is astonishingly good, especially considering the short time he has been painting, giving the illusion to the onlooker’s eye that the painting has come from the hand of an old master.We are very pleased to exhibit Neil’s paintings, and we are confident that he will quickly become a big hit in Rutland!